Us pop pundits are pessimistic about Robbie Williams' chances of cracking the American market after a troubled start for the British star.

Us pop pundits are pessimistic about Robbie Williams' chances of cracking the American market after a troubled start for the British star.

The former Take That singer flopped at a high profile pre-Grammy awards performance in New York last week, failing to rouse the crowd, most of whom were there to see rap group Public Enemy who headlined the event.

Williams admitted yesterday: "They were a really hard audience. I was really scared."

Craig Marks, editor of US music magazine Blender, estimated the singer has only a 40pc likelihood of succeeding in the US.

"He has a couple of strikes against him. He does everything with a layer of irony that doesn't translate well here."

Williams, 29, has sold 28 million albums worldwide during his solo career, but remains a relative unknown in the US.

Bosses at record company EMI have put their hopes of a revival on turning the performer into a household name in America. They offered him the most lucrative record deal in UK pop history last year, worth &#xA3;50m, despite a slump in the company's share price.